Customer Reviews

Eureka Timberline Outfitter 4 9-Foot by 7-Foot Four-Person Tent

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am a Scoutmaster. We have purchased many tents in the past for trials. Mostly Eureka tents but we have some Coleman, North Peak, ect... The last set of tents we purchased were the Eureka Timberline 4 (NOT THE OUTFITTER). This is a HUGE mistake. We camp between 1 - 3 times a month rain or shine, cold or hot. We have two other outfitters that were purchased back in 1988 that are still in full operation. Every other tent (including the regular timberlines from Eureka) just do not hold up to the use we put these things through.

The extra heavy flooring that is factory sealed does not allow water in PERIOD. The first time we took the four new ones out that we recently purchased, there was literely a stream of water three feet wide going UNDER the tent. In one night, we had 2.8 inches of rain in a 3 hour period. Not one drop got through the new Eureka Timberline Outfitter 4's Rainfly or door/window zippers. The kids stayed in their tents and I was really suprised that there was not even condensation on the inside of their tents from their breath. HOWEVER, the boys that were in the old Timberline 4's (not the outfitter series) were DRENCHED. We had seamsealed the tents (something for which the outfitters you NEVER have to do) but it still got through because of the rough use we put them through split the seamseal resin We had just applied it in March but had went on 4 campouts since then. I called the company about it, I didn't know that EACH time you put up and take down your tent, you are supposed to seamseal.

Anyway, best tent ever made for a Boy Scout Troop or anyone that does a lot of camping. If you need a bigger tent, go with the Timberline Outfitter 6. That is what I use. We fit two adults with cots in it comfortably. The only water that got into it was when I dragged in my drenched body from the rain.

Sincerely

Owl Patrol Memeber

There are many reviews on the long-lived Timberline series and the Outfitter model features. The toughness, durability, reliability, and weather resistance of the tent is well established, so the question is why choose the a-frame Timberline instead of one of the alternatives? The 3 and 4-man alternatives I looked at were: inexpensive tents (under $150), high-quality ultralight tents (Bibler, Black Diamond, and Eureka for example), outfitter-class dome tents (Eureka Assault Outfitter), large recreation tents (Copper Canyon and Cougar Flats) and walled tents. Each tent has fitness for a different purpose, and my purpose was to suit my family of four with two adults and two toddlers for public campground car camping, wilderness car camping, and short backpacking. Here's what I looked at:

For the part-time outdoor travel life, tents are much less expensive than motorhomes, RV's, trailers, and slide-ins. They also take much less land to store when they're not being used and I have a scarce amount of land. Comparatively, I would consider a $1000 tent a bargain, but nobody wants to pay for something they won't use or benefit from, especially if it's actually counter to their criteria (too heavy or too fragile for example). I ruled out walled tents and hardcore mountain tents (Bombshelter) because the cost was so high for something I didn't need and wouldn't use.

Rec tents (Copper Canyon, Cougar Flats) are also fairly expensive, but at least under $500. They're big and comfortable (near vertical walls and standing room), but they're not as tough or durable as Outfitter class tents (Pine Lodge maybe but then you're getting into bigger bucks). Rec tents are also not as weather proof. They're heavy (sometimes as much as 40 lbs) which makes them impractical to backpack with (I would need a two-tent plan). Ultimately, I decided against them because despite their comfort, I see a tent as a necessary evil. I would much rather do without a tent, but when you need one, you need one. No matter how enjoyable a tent is, it's still a tent and I would rather be outside.

Inexpensive tents might seem to fit the bill because I certainly don't want to lavish money on something where I just crawl in and fall asleep. The problem with cheap tents is they fail when you need them most, and they need to be replaced over and over again making the economy false. I expect frequent camping for many years and an Outfitter will outlast a cheap tent more than the price multiple. I need a tent most when it's windy and percipitous and that's when the cheap ones fail. For me, they're no bargain.

I am formerly a hardcore backpacker, and trekker. I also mountaineered in North America. I was an Alpine-style minimalist. Tents were nonsense. I would use at most a bivy sack in the snow or on a glacier or in a rainstorm. I still carried a lot of weight because I needed a lot of food calories for many days. Nevertheless, a man's got to know his limitations. If I had to carry a wife and two toddlers, not even a mosquito net would be light enough. However, within their range, a 10 pound tent is cake.

For my criteria, the other tent I really like is the Eureka Assault Outfitter. It's basically a dome version of the Timberline Outfitter, but it's about $100 and 3 pounds more. Undoubtably it's roomier (as is the Timberline Outfitter 6) but the Timberline Outfitter 4 meets all my needs.

One shortcoming of this tent is that the fly is not freestanding -- it must be guyed out to stakes or it will fall against the tent wall. This is not normally a problem but in deep snow or on solid granite you would have to get creative. The instructions suggest burying gear, using ski poles etc. I believe dome type tents (Assault Outfitter) with pole pockets or clips will hold the fly away from the wall without stakes and guy outs. If I was planning a lot of snow camping, this is not the best tent as the broad walls are also not the best for heavy snow loads. I am sure it would readily suffice for occasional snow use, even deep snow.

Another note is that cord is not included to guy out the tent walls when not using the fly. The fly clips to rings on the wall sides and bungee cords fixed to the fly are pulled out guy the tent to stakes. Without the fly, there's nothing to guy out the sides. The solution is to add your own guy lines. I used bungee balls. Additional guy lines and stakes, possibly heavier ones (if you're not backpacking) will improve the tent. I don't mark it down for not including these because it's an easy thing to solve. The fact that the tent/fly requires stakes to complete the pitching is however, in my opinion, a real shortcoming.

It's a no-frills tent that does what a tent needs to do real well and nothing else -- because ultimately I'm not out there to dwell in a tent.

These tents are well worth the price and will give you many years of service. The tub floor helps keep outside rainwater from seeping in, and the fly coverage on the sides is excellent.

I've been a fan of Eureka Timberline tents for over 22 years. Why such a fan? When my Boy Scout troop finally replaced their old canvas tents, they bought 2- and 4- person Timberline tents. I tented in those Timberlines every month for six straight years, and for weeks at a time each summer. They were exceptionally durable, light enough for backpacking treks, and fantastic for all seasons.

I'm pleased to say that the you'll find the same great workmanship and durability in a Timberline tent today. When I was younger, the 2-person tents were fine and the 4-person models were a luxury. Today, being older and larger, I favor the 4-person models. Adding a vestebule (purchased seperately) is a great way to add some storage space, allowing you to keep your pack and other goods outside the main tent, yet protected from the weather.

I recently purchased a lot of camping gear to carry on my motorcycle to do some solo traveling. I was not too concerned about weight because I was not intending on doing any back-packing. But I am somewhat limited in space. Over many years I have done a lot of camping while traveling by motorcycle and my old Eureka tent had lived it's life. I wanted a tent that was designed using better materials that will stand up to more abuse, so I decided on this Timberline Outfitter series. It costs a little more, but I feel it is well worth the additional cost. Like my old Eureka, this tent is free standing (meaning it can be moved once setup), but you must remember to use the supplied stakes if using in a windy area. I went with the larger 4-person size this time because I wanted additional space to store my gear inside the tent with me. Although I generally travel by motorcycle alone, there is plenty of room for 2-4 persons plus lots of gear if I ever go this route. This tent stores nicely in the provided bag and when attached to my bike, it does not extend beyond the width of the attached saddlebags on my motorcycle. Sets up in a couple minutes and by using the included rain fly, is completely water proof. Great quality at a very fair price. I have been a Eureka fan for many years and their quality is as good now as it was 30 years ago. If you want and/or need a great quality tent for any purpose, this is the one to buy. And as usual, Amazon takes great care of your needs. I saved enough money in shipping and tax to buy several other needed items to complete my motorcycle camping needs. Thanks Amazon!

Just got done with my 1st trip using this tent today, and have a few observations that I hope can help those thinking of purchasing one.

1st, never believe the weatherman!!! Decided to take a nice overnight fall foliage drive w/camping and the forecast called for partly cloudy with 30% chance of rain yesterday then clearing to mostly sunny with 20% chance today......well, it started a light shower at 1st around 9pm last night, then a steady moderate downpour developed soon later that lasted for over 24hrs strait without letup till 3pm today. Thank goodness the tent did not develop any leaks, but had weeping on the side floor panels just below the non-door window and one side wall that actually caused water to trickle down into a corner of the tent, not alot given the conditions we were in, and was managed by using a couple spare socks. Thank god we had an air mattress or we would have got wet.

2nd, you must realize that rarely is any tent perfect out of the box. As what i did was just that. Strait from the box to the set-up. The problem i noticed is the poly oxford floor is durable yes, and has a good interior coating. But due to its more porous fabric, really needs an exterior coating to shed water better, as the rain saturated the fabric, and eventually permeated the coating. All of the seams held tight, quality of fit/finish/and fabric were 100% and the fly worked perfectly!!! Just do yourself a favor and pick up a can or 2 of your favorite waterproof spray and use it to coat the entire outside floor tub.

3rd, more of a general gripe to the manufacture to make this tent as close to perfect as one can get, but do not detract from the ratings in any way. Need a way to attach the fly to the poles to make the entire structure more sturdy. Provide the extra quy-out lines w/stakes you so recommend in foul weather, and to make things simple, just produce all your Timberline tents as 2door models!!!!! (for the life of me I can't figure out why Eureka's top-line 4man Timberline is not offered in a 2door style)

Used this within a few days after receiving it. It rained for over 26 hours-constantly (sometimes heavy thunderstorms)and NOT one leak! I did use seam-sealer on the floor exterior seam and all exterior seams on the tent and fly prior to using it (as many experts do recommend doing every few years with any tent). The tent has a LOT of room for one person and gear and plenty for two people with gear. From what I have read and researched the "Outfitter" has thicker material and flooring vs. other Timberline tents and I am VERY glad I paid the extra money for this one. Believe me, I AM TOTALLY SOLD ON THIS TENT!! I have three tents now but will use this one primarly for solo backpacking. It is very well made, light-weight, secure and I KNOW now it's water-tight. It is VERY easy and quick to put up- anyone can do it in a super-fast manner! I quickly (and involuntarily) tested it with buckets of rain coming down on it. Can not recommend it enough. Get it!!

Our Boy Scout Troop has used the Eureka Timberline Outfitters for many years. If they are taken care of they will last most people most of a lifetime. Ours get used every month in all weather. We are just now retiring the last of the first ones the Troop purchased in 1981.

I am very pleased with the Eureka tent and am looking forward to using it during our October foliage season. We purchased a 3 season tent last year to do some fall camping in western Massachusetts, but there was so much mesh siding in the tent that the outside air temperature was the same inside the tent. Even though we were using down bags, we were miserable when the night temps dropped to the 30's. I have camped extensively in Colorado in the same temps (or lower) and not been uncomfortably cold in tents such as the Eureka that allow the mesh openings to be zippered shut. Four season 4-person tents from REI or EMS were priced about $200 more than the Eureka--much more than I wanted to pay to occasionally go car camping on a weekend. The Eureka is quick & simple to put up, and one person can do this. I watched my camping companions struggling to bend the poles just right to put up their dome tent--a two person project. The others had a tent (high end brand) that was like assembling an erector set. We were done setting up our Eureka in just a few minutes and didn't have to struggle to do it. We chose the option of having the more heavy duty floor and zippers and have not had any problems.

Very nice tent, best feature of this tent is that it is water proof, we do use it even under heavy rain. It changed our camping style. Highly recommended.

My first encounter with the Timberline tent was in Boy Scouts back in the 70s. We had the traditional canvas tents that leaked and were a bear to carry and set up, when one of the fathers helped us raise enough money to buy new equipment. The fathers bought Timberline tents and it was like a whole new world opened up to us! Wow were they great in comparison. Every spring we would set up the tents inside the church to seam seal these amazing shelters. Camping took on a whole new level of pleasure... Even if everything else was crappy from bad weather, to bad food or long marches... you knew at least the tent was going to be easy! So as an adult my choice for my own tent... Timberline was an easy choice. Not that I didn't try a few other less expensive tents first, but once the trips got more serious... The Timberline rose to the top of my chart.

I have been canoe tripping in Canada for years. Some as short as five days and some as long as seventy. I really appreciate the quality and durability of this tent. From freak snow storms to week long rain... this tent has never leaked or let me down. It even survived a bear encounter and a wolf moment! LOL... not that I think that bear couldn't have gotten in if it wanted to... but after a few tense moments, the bear left us alone.

The ventilation of this tent is excellent... with a little thought, even the smallest breeze cooled us in temps close to 100f. Even condensation can be avoided if you think things through before setting up. The high/low venting system really works... and you can zip up the screen to keep you warm if it gets in the four season range.

With simple practice, set up is a snap! With what the tent came with, you can guy this tent to take almost any wind situation. The storage bag kept the tent dry until we could get ready for set up. With a little practice we figured out how to set up the rain fly first so we could keep the interior tent dry.

I like the roominess of this tent. I like to bring in all my gear during the night and with the size of the interior, Three of us, a dog and all of our gear never felt cramped.

Who wouldn't want less weight and smaller packing size from a tent, but I never felt like the tent was too bulky for our packs. With a million sold and years of satisfied hard core campers using the timberline... you should keep it high on your list of next tents!